Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1887-12-21
PERSECUTION, NOT PROSECUTION.

The result OF the suit brought a. Deer
Lodge by the General Land Office against
7. F. Cakes, ]. NJ. Buckley, E. L. Bonner,
r. B. Hammond and T.. ]. Hathaway for
unlawfully taking timber from the public
domain and shipping the same out Of the
Territory is great relief to the defendants
and certainly to the mining industry OF the
Territory. The General Land Office look
pains to furnish the Associated Press with
the information which was thereby herald
ed to the country that these indictments
had been found and placed the fictitious
value On the alleged depredations at 49,.
600 $1,000, thereby conveying the impression
that a most terrible wrong had been done
the country and that the Department was
jealousy alive to the interests of the people
at large. As a matter of fact, this prosecu-
ton was nothing else than some of the
late Commissioner Sparks pernicious
activity by which he earned. OF laid himself
out to earn some cheap notoriety indepen-
IDENTIFY OF the real merits OF the matter.
In regard to the action OF the Grand
Jury that found these indictments we have
nothing to say, further than that it is sin.
gular that men living in this community
and aware of the absolute necessity to the
miningindustryof an ample supply oflumber
should be willing to bring in these indict-
ments. The cases did not come to trial
really, as the indictments were thrown out
Of court on a demurrer and the plea in
bar OF the statute of limitations. The
Montana Improvement Company and
the other lumber companies OF the Terri
tory have been a boon to the mining inter-
ests of this section, as the least reflection
must convince anyone.
1t is impossible for any mine to establish
a sawmill for its own supply of lumber
without at the same time making arrange
ments to enter upon a general numbering
business. The timber needed for
sets in a mine to be dressed
to the required size is only
about five-eighths OF the timber cut, leav-
ing about three-eighths to be disposed of in
SOM shape or other. The Montana I'm.
provement Company and the sawmills and
lumber companies in operation in the Ter /
ritory supply the mines with the size of
timbers they need, and by cutting the re-
manning parts Of the logs into dimension
lumber. they are able to supply the mines
and the general public economically and |
with benefit to both. A other point to be
remembered is that IL. dealing in large |
quantities they have ben able to reduce
freights on lumber to d minimum, an ad.
vantage that is shared by all the mills,
small and large, and OF which the public |
receives the benefit. Should these lumber |
companies and sawmills shut down, where
would the mining industry be-? The mines
would have to suspend operations until
the Government had surveyed it's lands,
placed a price upon them and offered them
to the public for sale. The people OF this
community should be prepared to sustain
these companies at all hazards as a factor
absolutely necessary to the welfare of their
chief industry.
A case OF the nature Of that just thrown
in Colorado and the feeling that the COM
munity, through a jury, there evinced is
suggestive to the people Of this section as
the right view to take OF the matter. A
defendant vas sued by the Government for
cutting lumber OF the public domain. The
case came on for trial and the Government
presented it's evidence. When the defence
was called the defendant produced no
evidence, called no witnesses, simply laid
the case before thejury by taking the stand
himself and informing the jury that he had
cut the timber for the use and benefit of
the mines and people living there, and the
jury. knowing the fact, brought in a verdict
for the defendant without leaving their
seats. |,
There are millions more feet of lumber
accidentally and wantonly burned annually
in the Northwest than is put into use. The
at Washington are under the
mistaken impression that there are
men at work in the lumber
regions OF the Northwest engaged in I
wastefully cutting down timber
without any Interior object. Were these
surveyed there is no question but
that tho land would beimmsdjately bought !
up' Tts main supply Of lumber iusp'aAsd i